


Where the Heart Is

by ArtemisRayne



Series: May Look at a King - A Newsies Felisian AU [21]
Category: Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Felisian, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cat/Human Hybrids, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Felisian, Felisian!Jack, Fluff, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, soft bois
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-07-10 04:53:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19900138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtemisRayne/pseuds/ArtemisRayne
Summary: "What? What's so funny?""I just - I like when you call this place home."





	Where the Heart Is

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick, short bit of fluff to make up for there being so much angst recently. These boys deserve a moment of sweetness.

In a haze of late-night study sessions and mind-numbing exams, the end of the semester sneaks up on them all. Davey's been riding on a high, thrilled to get officially admitted into his Journalism program and then also being accepted into the summer program he applied for. He's looking forward to a break from the mountains of homework and to seeing his family again for the first time since New Year's. The end of the school year just brings one thing with it that puts a small damper on his excitement. 

Letting out a breath, Davey pulls the zipper on his suitcase and glances around the barren dorm room to make sure there's nothing left behind. He can't shake the feeling that he's forgetting something, even though the place is cleared of everything except his two suitcases of belongings sitting on the bare mattress and his backpack with the few things he needs for the last few days. Davey shakes his head and slings the backpack over his shoulder, then slips out of the dorm and locks it behind him. 

Exams are finished, and the campus is slowly emptying as students flee home for summer break. Davey's got a bus ticket booked for Tuesday morning, but for now, he's got one last weekend with Jack. One more weekend before Davey won't see his boyfriend for almost three months. 

The city is warming up, the cool spring boiling into a humid summer. Davey barely has to think about where he's going, letting his feet carry him down the familiar path. He's just stopped in at the little ice cream shop on the way when his phone chimes from his pocket. Davey pulls it out and grins when he sees the text. 

_ >Jack: hows the packing? _

Davey hastily gives the cashier his order before he sends a reply. 

_ >Davey: Done. Almost home. Stopped at Jacobi's _

The speech bubble pops up, disappears, pops up again, and then vanishes. Davey raises an eyebrow, wondering what's making Jack erase his reply so much. A minute later, Jack's response is just a string of emojis, smiley faces and hearts and colorful ice cream cones. Davey laughs, shaking his head, and stows his phone away. 

Once he's collected the two little cups of ice cream - one a regular Neopolitan and the other a dairy-free mint chocolate chip - Davey heads down the street to the apartment building. He lets himself in and smirks when he sees Jack sprawled on the sofa in his ratty painting clothes. "You look cozy," he comments in amusement. 

Jack flits his ears, grinning, and stretches lazily. "Don't got nowhere to be 'til tonight," he points out. Davey crosses to the sofa, where Jack moves his legs just long enough to let him sit down before promptly dropping them into Davey's lap. Shaking his head, Davey hands the dairy-free ice cream out to him. "Mm, you're the best. What's the occasion?" 

"I don't know, I just wanted ice cream," Davey admits with a laugh. "It's hot outside, seemed like a good day for a treat." He pokes playfully at the hole in Jack's jeans where his knee is visible. "Please tell me you're going to change before we go." 

"What, ya think this ain't fancy enough for a graduation?" the felisian asks sarcastically. "I love this shirt." 

Davey glances at the graphic tee, a cartoon avocado with whiskers, a cat's tail, and a sombrero above a silly font that reads _Avogato_. He rolls his eyes fondly. "At least it's better than the one with the pussy joke," he concedes. Jack snorts a laugh and nearly chokes on his ice cream in the process. "Crazy to think after tonight, Race'll have his Master's." 

"No kiddin', right?" Jack says. "Can you believe he's managed to convince people he's really that smart?" 

Davey chuckles, flicking Jack's ankle in rebuke. "Bet he's excited to finally be done with school," Davey says. "He heard back about that internship job?" 

Jack hums. "Guess they got it narrowed down to three guys now," he says. "Got another round of interviews next week. They're sayin' they'll have it picked soon after that. Pretty sure he's gonna get it, though, the boss guy really likes him." 

"That's so cool," Davey says, grinning. 

"Yeah, everyone's doin' all this cool shit this summer," Jack says. "Race's gonna be a big fancy engineer, Specs is going to that dance camp thing, you're gonna be in freakin' _Africa_ , and what'm I doin'? I'mma keep makin' coffee and be all pathetic and lonely." 

Davey nudges Jack's leg with an elbow. "Hey, coffee's important," he teases. The felisian gives him a dry look and smacks Davey with his tail. Davey's smile softens. "I'm gonna miss you too." 

Jack flops his tail, so the end taps against Davey's arm. "How'm I supposed to survive you bein' gone that long? Not even like I can come to visit like if you was just going back to your folks' house." 

"Only for six weeks," Davey reminds him, but it makes something twist inside his chest. 

In two weeks, he'll be flying out for Ghana. The study-abroad summer program is an incredible experience, and he's thrilled to be going. Hosted by a handful of universities, the program sends a half-dozen journalism majors from each school to a foreign country for six weeks to get involved in world affairs. Not only is it a difficult program to get into, but it's also going to give him great experience for his degree and career. 

The obvious downside is that he's going to be on a different continent - a completely different _hemisphere_ \- than Jack for half of the summer. 

Jack snorts. "I couldn't handle ya bein' gone a week for Christmas, remember? I'm _needy_." 

It's impossible to hold back the laugh at that one. "I know you are, drama queen. But it'll go by fast, you'll see," Davey says, trying to convince himself as much as Jack. "And I promise, I'm gonna vid you so much, you'll be sick of me by the end of the summer." 

Jack chuckles. "I'mma hold ya to that." 

Grinning, Davey traces the handle of his spoon on the underside of Jack's foot. Jack squeaks and kicks his hand away, and Davey dissolves into laughter. "Glad you think you're so funny," the felisian says. He tosses his empty ice cream cup onto the coffee table and twists up to straddle Davey's lap. Leaning in, Jack nudges his nose against Davey's affectionately. 

"You think I'm funny too," Davey replies. 

The felisian smirks. "Fuck, I do, huh?" he says, shaking his head. "Well, now I'm _really_ screwed. Just gonna be even bored-er this summer now." He whines tragically and drops his forehead onto Davey's shoulder. "Ugh, seriously, it's gonna suck." 

Davey smiles, one hand tracing along the lines of muscle in Jack's bicep while the other sneaks beneath the hem of his shirt. "Don't worry. Summer will go by fast. I'll be home before you have time to miss me." For some reason that makes Jack laugh, his tail jittering where it's hanging between Davey's calves. "What? What's so funny?" 

"Nothin'," Jack says, sitting up. His smile is so intensely fond that it makes Davey's heart skip a beat. When Davey raises an eyebrow questioningly, the felisian elaborates, "Just, I like it when ya call this place 'home.'" 

Caught off guard, Davey's eyes widen, and then he blushes scarlet. "Oh, I - it wasn't - I didn't mean to. I didn't even notice." 

"Yeah? 'Cause you've been doin' it for a while," says Jack, and his amber eyes are bright. "Not all the time, but sometimes. It's cute." 

"I have?" Davey asks, and his voice cracks, which of course doesn't help the embarrassment matter any. 

"Least since my birthday," Jack says. "Or, least, that's the first time I noticed." 

The flush spreads all the way up to the tips of his ears. "Why didn't you _say_ anything?" 

The felisian beams warmly. "Toldja, 'cause it's cute." Davey makes a distressed noise and buries his face in Jack's chest. "Nah, really, I mean it," Jack goes on, nuzzling the top of Davey's head reassuringly. "It's adorable. I like - I dunno, like thinkin' home is somethin' we gonna have together someday, ya know?" 

Even though Davey's sure he's going to spontaneously combust from how badly he's blushing, he smiles into the stupid pun printed on Jack's shirt. Davey really had no idea he'd been calling Jack's apartment 'home,' but something about it feels right. After all, he spends more time here than in his dorm anyway. And while he loves his family and the home he grew up in, he can't imagine moving back to Buffalo after living in Manhattan. This is where he feels most himself. 

More than that, being here with Jack makes him feel like he's on the right track to becoming who he wants to be. 

Davey lifts his head, glancing up to meet Jack's gaze, and his heart turns over. The felisian is blushing too, his nerves clear in the way his ears are pivoted back a little bit. They exchange timid smiles, and Jack obviously reads his thoughts because before Davey can drag him down, Jack leans in to kiss him tenderly. As Davey pulls him closer, a low, resonant purr rolls between them and his tail fidgets against Davey's knee again. "I love you," Davey says, being sure to meet Jack's eyes as he says it. "And yeah, I think this, being with you, if that's what home is gonna be - I could get used to this." 

Jack's face splits into an enormous grin, his tail bouncing, and then he _chitters_. It's only a split second, two quick, high chirps, and the noise seems to shock him as much as it does Davey. The nerves and self-consciousness come immediately on the heels of the surprise, the felisian's ears folding back as he ducks his head, retreating in on himself. So, before Jack can start overthinking it, Davey grabs him and pulls him into a bruising kiss. 

"I think," Davey pants when Jack shifts his focus down to Davey's throat, "that we've got a couple hours before we need to start getting ready for Race's graduation, and if I'm not-" He breaks off with a breathless whine when Jack nips at the corner of his jaw. "Fuck it, just get your ass in the bedroom," Davey says, shoving at the felisian's chest. "I don't have the brains for smooth lines right now. Just _move_." 

"Yes'sir," Jack says, laughing as he leaps up off the taller man's lap. He holds out his hands to pull Davey up with him. As soon as they're both upright, Jack tugs Davey flush against his chest and grins mischievously, that beautifully cock-eyed smirk with a hint of fang that never fails to turn Davey's insides to molten lava. "Better get it in while we can, huh?" he jokes and winks. "Gotta show ya such a good time ya don't forget 'bout me while you're gone takin' over the world." 

Davey laughs and trades a daring smile with his boyfriend. "Promises, promises," he says dryly. "If you're gonna show me a good enough time to hold me over 'til I get _home_ ," he places a deliberate emphasis on the word, watching the blinding smile bloom on Jack's face again, "then you better get started, Casanova." 

"That's _Cat_ -anova, thank ya very much," Jack replies, smirking. "And babe, your wish is my command." He lifts Davey off the ground, slinging him over his shoulder despite Davey's indignant protest, and laughs as he sprints for the bedroom.

**Author's Note:**

> The study-abroad journalism program in Accra, Ghana is an actual program at NYU. I've taken a few artistic liberties, but I wanted to build from reality.  
> Side note, I've spent so much time researching different things about NYU while writing this series that they've reached out to ask if I'm considering enrolling.


End file.
